FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: May 8, 2012 Press Contacts: Raechel Alexander Rachelle Roe CHICAGO SYMPHONY ORCHESTRA ANNOUNCES TOUR PLANS FOR 2012/13 SEASON Music Director Riccardo Muti Leads CSO in Fall 2012 Tour to New York City and Mexico CSO s Seventh Tour to Far East in 2013 is First with Music Director Riccardo Muti Bank of America is the Global Sponsor of the CSO CHICAGO The (CSO) and Music Director Riccardo Muti announce 2012/13 season touring plans, including three concerts at New York s Carnegie Hall in October to open the famed venue s 2012/13 season, followed by two concerts in Guanajuato and Mexico City, Mexico on October 8 and 10, 2012 the Orchestra s first performances in that country. Previously announced repertoire for Carnegie Hall includes Orff s Carmina Burana on October 3 with soprano Rosa Feola, countertenor Antonio Giovannini and baritone Audun Iversen, along with the Chicago Symphony Chorus and Chicago Children s Choir. On Thursday, October 4, Muti and the CSO perform Wagner s Overture to The Flying Dutchman and Franck s Symphony in D Minor, along with the New York premiere of CSO Mead Composer-in-Residence Mason Bates Alternative Energy, which received its world premiere by Muti and the CSO in February 2012. The final New York concert on Friday, October 5 features Dvořák s Symphony No. 5, Martucci s Notturno and Respighi s Feste romane. The program for the CSO s two debut performances in Mexico is Verdi s Overture to Nabucco, Mendelssohn s Symphony No. 4, (Italian) and Brahms Symphony No. 2. The October 8 performance in Guanajuato is part of the Festival Internacional Cervantino, and takes place at Teatro Juárez. The concert on October 10 in Mexico City takes place at the Palacio de Bellas Artes. In January and February 2013, Maestro Muti and the Orchestra take their first trip to Asia together, marking the Orchestra s seventh trip to the Far East. Together, they perform two concerts in Taipei, Taiwan at the Chiang Kai-Shek National Concert Hall; two concerts in
Hong Kong at the Hong Kong Cultural Centre as part of the Hong Kong Arts Festival; one each in Shanghai (Oriental Arts Centre), Beijing (National Center for the Performing Arts) and Tianjin (Tianjin Grand Theater) in China; and two in Seoul, South Korea at the Seoul Arts Center to conclude the tour. This tour marks the Orchestra s debuts in Taiwan and Korea, as well as in Tianjin, China. The CSO last toured Asia in 2009. Repertoire for this tour includes two programs: Stravinsky s Divertimento, Suite from The Fairy s Kiss; Busoni s Suite from Turandot, Op.41; and Brahms Symphony No. 4 on one program and Verdi s Overture to I vespri siciliani, Mendelssohn s Symphony No. 4 and Beethoven s Symphony No. 3 on the other. Bank of America is the Global Sponsor of the CSO. Born in Naples, Italy, RICCARDO MUTI first came to the attention of critics and public in 1967, when he won the Guido Cantelli Competition for conductors in Milan. In 1971, Muti was invited by Herbert von Karajan to conduct at the Salzburg Festival; his association with the Vienna Philharmonic and the festival continues today. Muti has served as principal conductor of the Maggio Musicale Fiorentino, chief conductor of the Philharmonia Orchestra, music director of the Philadelphia Orchestra and music director of the Teatro alla Scala. In 2006, he was appointed artistic director of Salzburg s Pentecost Festival. Over the course of his extraordinary career, Riccardo Muti has conducted the most prominent orchestras in the world, from the Berlin Philharmonic to the Bavarian Radio Symphony Orchestra, the New York Philharmonic to the Orchestre National de France. Maestro Muti made his debut with the Chicago Symphony Orchestra at the Ravinia Festival in July 1973. His appointment as the CSO s tenth music director was announced in May 2008, and in September 2010, he assumed the post for a five-year contract. Maestro Muti and the CSO s first recording together Verdi s Messa da Requiem on the CSO Resound label was awarded two Grammy awards, marking Muti s first such honor. In March 2011, Riccardo Muti was selected as the second-ever winner of the Birgit Nilsson Prize, awarded by the Birgit Nilsson Foundation every two or three years to a singer or conductor who has had a significant impact in the classical field. A musical force in Chicago and around the world, the CHICAGO SYMPHONY ORCHESTRA has been consistently hailed as one of the finest international orchestras since its founding in 1891. In collaboration with renowned conductors and guest artists on the international music scene, the CSO performs well over 150 concerts each year at its home, Symphony Center, and in summer residency at the Ravinia Festival. With the launch of The Institute for Learning, Access, and Training, the CSO engages more than 200,000 Chicago-area residents annually. Music lovers outside Chicago enjoy the sounds of the Chicago Symphony Orchestra not only through its Radio Broadcast Series and best-selling recordings on its acclaimed in-house record label CSO Resound, but also through sold-out tour performances in the United States and around the globe. Bank of America is the global sponsor of the CSO. For more information about the CSO, visit cso.org.
Tour Itinerary NEW YORK AND MEXICO Carnegie Hall Wednesday, October 3, 2012 Rosa Feola, soprano Antonio Giovannini, countertenor Audun Iversen, baritone Chicago Symphony Chorus Duain Wolfe, conductor and director Chicago Children s Choir Josephine Lee, director ORFF Carmina Burana Carnegie Hall Thursday, October 4, 2012 WAGNER Overture to The Flying Dutchman FRANCK Symphony in D Minor BATES Alternative Energy (New York premiere) Carnegie Hall Friday, October 5, 2012 DVOŘÁK Symphony No. 5 MARTUCCI Notturno RESPIGHI Feste romane. Teatro Juárez Monday, October 8, 2012 Guanajuato, Mexico VERDI Overture to Nabucco BRAHMS: Symphony No. 2 Palacio de Bellas Artes Wednesday, October 10, 2012 Mexico City, Mexico VERDI Overture to Nabucco BRAHMS: Symphony No. 2
Tour Itinerary ASIA Chiang Kai-Shek National Concert Hall Friday, January 25, 2013 Taipei, Taiwan Chiang Kai-Shek National Concert Hall Saturday, January 26, 2013 Taipei, Taiwan Hong Kong Cultural Centre Monday, January 28, 2013 Hong Kong Hong Kong Cultural Centre Tuesday, January 29, 2013 Hong Kong Oriental Arts Centre Thursday, January 31, 2013 Shanghai, China National Center for the Performing Arts Sunday, February 3, 2013 Beijing, China
Tianjin Grand Theatre Monday, February 4, 2013 Tianjin, China Seoul Arts Center Wednesday, February 6, 2013 Seoul, South Korea Seoul Arts Center Thursday, February 7, 2013 Seoul, South Korea # # #